1 Samuel 27

¹And David said to himself, 'Now I shall one day be swept away by Saul's hand. There is nothing better for me than to escape to the land of the Philistines, so that Saul will despair of seeking me any longer throughout all the territory of Israel; and I shall escape from his hand.'

²And David arose and crossed over, he and six hundred men who were with him, to Achish son of Maoch, king of Gath.

³And David dwelt with Achish in Gath, he and his men, each man with his household, and David had his two wives, Ahinoam the Jezreelitess, and Abigail the wife of Nabal the Carmelitess.

⁴And it was told to Saul that David had fled to Gath, and he sought him no more.

⁵And David said to Achish: 'If now I have found favor in your eyes, let them give me a place in one of the cities of the field, that I may dwell there. Why should your servant dwell in the royal city with you?'

⁶So Achish gave him Ziklag on that day; therefore Ziklag has belonged to the kings of Judah to this day.

⁷And the number of days that David dwelt in the country of the Philistines was a year and four months.

⁸And David and his men went up and raided the Geshurites, the Girzites, and the Amalekites, for these were the inhabitants of the land from of old, as you come toward Shur and as far as the land of Egypt.

⁹And David struck the land and left neither man nor woman alive, and took the flocks and the cattle and the donkeys and the camels and the garments, and returned and came to Achish.

¹¹And neither man nor woman did David let live, to bring to Gath, saying, 'Lest they report against us, saying: Thus David did, and thus was his custom all the days that he dwelt in the country of the Philistines.'

¹²And Achish believed David, saying, 'He has made himself utterly odious among his people, in Israel; and he shall be my servant forever.'